Japan's Cherry Blossom Time

Kyoto, the iconic tourist spot of Japan, explodes in early spring with clouds of cherry blossoms throughout the city. Johanna King takes us around this ancient city, that served as the home of the court of Japan for about 900 years, visiting shrines and temples and photographing their flowering arboreta.

King sets to feasting her senses on the unsurpassed variety of colors, shades, sizes, and shapes of blossoms. She imparts to her audience the cultural significance and devotion of the Japanese people to the yearly ritual of experiencing the blossom time. This is a special time for weddings and for wearing of traditional dress. Occasionally one catches sight of a geisha, in her spectacular robes and makeup, who seem to embody the paradoxical tension between the modern and traditional in today’s Japan.